Cigarette-machine feed.



S. l. PRESCOTT.

CIGARETTE MACHINE FEED.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 17. 1912.

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

. 3 SHEETS-SHEET l- S. l. PRESCOTT.

CIGARETTE MACHINE FEED.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 12. Ian.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- 7,745,; Patented Dec.17, 1918.

S. I. PRESCOTT.

CIGARETTE MACHINE FEED APPLICATION FILED OCT. 17. I917.

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET a.

l/VI/E/VTOR UNTT E roe.

SYDNEY I. PRESCOTT, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN MACHINE &

FOUNDRY COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

CIGARETTE-MACHINE FEED.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SYDNEY I. PREsoo'r'r, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, county of New York, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Cigarette- Machine Feeds, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in cigarette machine feeds.

Cigarette making machines heretofore in commercial use have been equipped with one of two distinct types of feed mechanisms; that is to say, with what is known in the industry as a hand feed or what is known as an automatic feed.

A hand feed requires the constant attention of two operators, one to operate the cigarette machine. proper, and the other to weigh and spread tobacco upon the forwarding belt of the feed mechanism. The feed belt is provided with transverse marks at regular intervals and the operator weighs a quantity of tobacco on a set scale and then spreads it on the belt between two adjacent marks, this operation being repeated as long as the machine is running. The tobacco should be spread in a sheet of uniform thickness upon the marked area of the belt in order that the finished cigarettes be uniform. The time in which these weighing and spreading operations must be performed is very limited when the machine is running at the speed customary in commercial use, and the feed operator must work "ery rapidly and without aid other than the belt marks. The uniformity of the sheet of tobacco therefore depends upon the skill of the operator and her endurance. And of course the speed of the cigarette machine proper can be no greater than, and is limited by, the speed of the feeding operation. The tobacco is separated from the sheet on the feed belt by a picker mechanism which showers the tobacco directly to the cigarette machine proper. The tobacco comes to the machine in a jumbled entangled mass. The feed operator must separate a handful of tobacco from this entangled mass, weigh it, and add thereto if it is of short weight, or subtract therefrom if it is overweight, before she can spread it on the feed belt. The time available for this weighing operation ';'is too short to permit accurate weighing. "lho quantity of tobacco spread between ad- Specification of Letters Patent.-

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

Application filed October 17, 1917. Serial No. 197,021.

jacent marks therefore varies. Moreover, successive weights of tobacco vary in degree of entanglement, and present varying difliculties in spreading. Any irregularity in the sheet of tobacco becomes apparent when the tobacco goes into the'cigarette rod and is cut into individual cigarettes, but it is then too late to correct the error, and the resultant cigarettes, too hard or too soft as the case may be, must be ripped open, the wrappers thrown away and the tobacco rehandled.

When an automatic feed is used, the constant attention of an operator for the cigarette machine proper is also required, but it has been customary to employ a supply attendant for a battery or number ofm'achines whose duty it is to go from machine to machine at intervals and deposit in the feed hopper an unmeasured and unweighed mass of tobacco, the'mechanism itself disentangling tobacco from the mass and delivering it directly to the cigarette machine proper. The disentangling and feeding action is continuous while the mass of tobacco in the hopper is augmented only at intervals more or lessirregular. The weight of the tobacco in the mass therefore varies constantly; consequently, the pressure exerted by it constantly varies. This pressure is an important factor in forcing tobacco on the disentangling pins of the feed surface; and

when the pressure is greatest, the quantity of tobacco forced on the pins is greatest, and vice versa. The delivery of tobacco from the mass to the cigarette machine proper is therefore irregular, although not in the same way as that of a hand feed, for in the automatic feed the quantity fed progressively decreases in a manner not readily perceptible because of the gradual decrease in weight of the tobacco mass until it suddenly increases when a new supply is dumped into the hopper, while the irregularity of the hand feed is due to other causes and may occur at any time. Both types of feed possess certain advantages as well as certain disadvantages, and although both types have been extensively used, neither type satisfies the demands of the industry in point of speed and uniformity of product, for the reasons above indicated, and for other reasons the explanation of which is deemed unnecessary for present purposes.

The main object of the present invention hand feeding operationsometimes over and sometimes under normalwil1 not be transmitted directly to the cigarette machine proper, but to a mass of tobacco in the automatic feed mechanism, which mass is large enough to absorb the error without appreciably affecting the weight of the mass as a whole; and so that the weight of the mass of tobacco in the automatic feed mechanism will be constantly maintained by the hand feed and irregularity in the ultimate delivery of the tobacco to the cigarette machine thus avoided; the production of a machine in which the hand feed moves at a slower speed than the feed surface of the automatic feed mechanism in order to provide more time in which to effect the spreading of a thick sheet of tobacco on the feed belt, a thicker sheet being more readily spread than a thin one and the additional time provided permitting more uniform spreading; the production of an automatic feed having a feed throat formed by a moving feed surface and a plate co-acting therewith to support a mass of tobacco over said throat, and a tobaccoforwarding device co-acting therewith to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by the feed surface; the production of a tobacco mass hopper having a wall provided with a series of slots and mass tum bling devices projecting through said slots and engaging the mass to aid in keeping it constantly in uniform tumbling motion; the production of an automatic feed mechanism provided with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein to rake back tobacco entangled with the normal sheet actually engaged and forwarded by the feed surface; the production of a machine having a forwarding belt overrunning a pair of rolls and a device intermittently striking said belt to shake therefrom any particles of tobacco adhering thereto after the main body of the tobacco has left said belt and to deliver the particles so removed with the main body of the tobacco; the production of a ma chine organized o insure the delivery of the shorts normally interspersed with the long shreds of tobacco to a cigarette machine, and thus prevent the accumulation of shorts and wastage; the production of a machine of the general type indicated above which is simple inconstruction and the various parts of which are readily accessible for inspection and repairs. Vith these and other objects not specifically mentioned in view, the invention consists in certain constructions, combinations, and parts which will be hereinafter fully described and then specifically pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification and in which like characters of reference indicate the same or like parts,Figure 1 is a central sectional view of a device constructed in accordance with the invention; Fig. 2 is a side elevation-of the structure shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is the opposite side elevation of the same structure.

In carrying the invention into effect, there is provided an automatic feed mechanism having a disentangling and feeding surface, means for confining a mass of tobacco in contactwith said surface, and a tobacco forwarding device co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the confined mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface. There is further provided raking and tumbling devices coiiperating with the feed surface to keep the confined mass of tobacco constantly but slowly tumbling over and over.

In the best constructions. the tobacco forwarding device is a type of hand feed having a slowly moving feed belt provided with marks to aid an operator in accurately weighing and spreading a definite quantity of tobacco upon a definite area of the belt. and with a picker mechanism for showering the forwarded tobacco on the top of the to bacco mass in the automatic feed mechanism: the automatic feed mechanism includes a moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, the other wall of the feed throat being formed by a slotted plate. through the slots of which raking and tumbling devices operate in a reverse direction; a picker mechanism is located in thefeed throat; a for warding belt underruns the throat, the feed surface and the raking devices and delivers the tobacco separated from the mass by the feeding surface to a second picker mechanism which showers the tobacco into a chute,- which in turn delivers it to a cigarette machine. In-the best Constructionsalso, the feed device, the tobacco tonvarding device, the tumbling devices, the forwarding warding belt to shake therefrom particles of tobacco adhering thereto after the body of the tobacco has been delivered from said belt and to insure the delivery of such particles with the main body of the tobacco to the cigarette machine. All of the above mechanisms, devices and parts, and their arrangement, may be varied in construction in many ways'within the scope of the claims. The particular device selected to illustrate the invention is but one of many possible concrete embodiments of the same. The invention therefore is not to be restricted to the precise details of the selected. structure shown and described. Furthermore, certain parts of the invention are capable of use independent of other parts, and such independent use is contemplated.

Referring to the drawings, 4 and 5 indicate side frames serving to support the various mechanisms of the machine. Near its top, the side frame 4 is provided with a horizontally extending bracket 6, the outer end of which carries a stud 7 which engages an eye formed on one end of a supporting bar 8, the other end of said bar being fitted in a boss 9 formed on the side frame 4 and held in place thereon by means of a nut 10. Similarly, the side frame 5 is provided with a horizontally extending bracket 11, the outer end of which carries a stud 12 engaging an eye formed on one end of a supporting bar 13, the other end of this bar being secured in a boss 14 formed in the side frame 5 and held in position therein by means of r a nut 15. The side frames are spaced apart a suitable distance which will depend upon the designed capacity of the machine. Secured to the side frames by suitable means, not shown but well known to mechanics, is a casing preferably constructed of wood and including side walls 16 and 17 respectively secured to the side frames 4 and 5. The casing further includes a fixed vertical wall 18, a fixed vertical wall 19 above the wall 18 and offset therefrom, a fixed transparent wall 20 opposite the wall 19, a floor 21, and a top or ceiling 22. Hinged at 23 to the side wall 19 andreaching to the side wall 18 is a door 24 affording access to one side of the interior of the casing. Hinged at 25 to the side wall 20 is another door 26 affording access to the opposite side of the interior of the casing. And hinged at 27 to the ceiling 22 is a cover 28 affording access to the top of the interior of the casing. By an inspection of Fig. 1', it will be readily recognized that the upper part of the casing forms a hopper adapted to confine a mass of entangled shredded tobacco which can be seen through the transparent Wall 20 by the operator of the cigarette machine in connection with which the device is used, said cigarette machine operator being constantly em loyed at the side of the device which has t e transparent wall 20. This operator can therefore at all times see the mass of tobacco in the hopper and note its condition and its action.

The hopper formed by the upper part of the casing has no fixed bottom and other means'are provided for supporting the mass of tobacco confined by the hopper walls. This means includes a moving disentangling and feeding surface consisting of card clothing 29 tacked or otherwise secured to a feed drum having disk-like ends 30 and a periphery 31 constructed of segments of wood secured to both disks. The feed drum is rotated in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1 by means of its supporting shaft 32, which shaft extends across the machine and is journaled in suitable bearings formed in the side frames 4 and 5 before referred to. The movement of the feed drum and its feed surface is continuously forward, and this movement is effected by the following mechanism: Secured upon the shaft 32 is a gear wheel 33 which is driven by a pinion 34 rotating upon a stud 35 fixed in the side frame 5. The pinion 34 is secured to and is rotated by a' gear Wheel 36 and this gear wheel 36 is in mesh with a pinion 37 fast upon and rotated by a shaft 38 which is the main power shaft of the machine. The shaft 38 extends across the machine and is journaled in suitable bearings in the side frames 4 and 5. It will be readily understood that the angular velocity of the shaft 32 and the feed drum carried thereby is very low as compared with the angular velocity of the power shaft 38.

By an inspection of Fig. 1, it will be readily understood that the feed surface occupies the major portion of the bottom of the hopper; it further forms one wall of a feed throat at 39 arranged to receive tobacco from above and to deliver it below. The other wall of this feed throat is formed by a slotted plate generally indicated by the reference character 40, which co-acts with the feed surface to support the mass of tobacco above the throat. This plate 40 is reversely curved with respect to the curvature of the periphery of the feed drum. Its middle section 41 is concentrically curved over a raking drum consisting of raking devices or pins 42 which are a part of card clothing secured to the wooden part 43 of the raking drum, this wooden part being supported by suitable end disks 44 mounted upon a shaft 45 extending across the machine and journaled in suitable bearings formed on the side frames 4 and 5 before referred to. The lower end 46 of the plate 40 is concentrically curved over the feed surface and .is rigidly supported by means of volts 47 secured in the sides of the machine. I The upper part of the plate over the &

ing. The number of slots in this plate corresponds with the number of rows of raking pins in the card clothing covering the raking drum and the exact number of course depends upon the width of the machine.

By an inspection of Fig. 1, it will be seen that the pins of the disentangling and feeding, surface incline forwardly; that is to say, in the direction of the feeding movement and therefore have a downward movement through the feed throat-while the raking devices of the raking drum are rearwardly inclined and project through the slots of the plate 10 into said throat and are upwardly movable therein. This upward movement, however, is not a continuous movement but occurs intermittently. The mechanism for producing this intermittent movement of the raking drum and raking devices carried thereby is as follows: Secured upon one end of the raking drum shaft 45 is a ratchet wheel 49. This ratchet wheel is engaged by one end of a pawl 50, the other end of the pawl 50 being in the form of an eccentric strap 51 surrounding an eccentric 52 secured upon the main power shaft 38 before referred to, between the side frame 5 and the gear 37. It will be readily understood that as the power shaft 38 rotates, the free end of the pawl 50 is given a reciprocating movement and its engagement with the ratchet wheel 19 will produce an intermittent rotating movement of said ratchet wheel and of the raking drum. To prevent any reverse movement of the raking drum there is provided a latch 58 mounted on a stud 54 secured to the side frame 5 and provided with a counterweight 55 to in sure the engagement of the latch with the ratchet wheel49.

The tendency of the disentangling and feeding surface is to force the tobacco mass in the hopper over toward the plate 40 and down into the feed throat 39. The upward movement of the raking devices 42, o erating through the slots of the plate 40 in the throat, tends to rake back tobacco entangled with the normal quantity actually engaged and forwarded by the disentangling and feeding surface and move it upwardly along the surface of the plate 10. This downward movement.of a part of the bottom of the mass and upward movement of the other part of the bottom of the mass produces a tumbling action of the mass within the confining hopper. Devices are provided for aiding this tumbling movement, so that there will be no tendency for the tobacco to become jammed in the throat, these devices being located above the raking drum and operative through the slotsof the plate 40 and consist of a series of ratchet-lik tumbling wheels 56 projecting through the slots of the plate 10, as clearly shownin Fig. 1,

' and spaced apart by circular spacers 57,

both the ratchet-like wheels and the spacers being keyed upon the power shaft 38 before referred to. The tumbling devices rotate in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 1, and by an inspection of that figure, it will be seen that the long inclined faces of their teeth first engage the tobacco in the plane of the plate at the osition of first engagement and tend to pus the tobacco away from said plate or toward the center of the 'mass. As they rotate and the oints of the teeth move upwardly, the tobacco is lifted or moved upwardly by said points along the plate and the wall 19, and then the teeth are withdrawn from contact with the tobacco, the angularity of the teeth being designed to permit this withdrawal without danger of dragging any tobacco through the slots of the plate. By the mechanism just described,

the tobacco mass supported by the disentanglingv and feeding surface and the plate 40 and confined by the hopper, is given aregular tumbling movement.

Located in the feed throat below the lower end 46 of the plate 10 is a picker mechanism for removing tobacco from the disentangling and feeding surface, and this picker mechanism co-acts with the lower edge of the plate 40 for this purpose. The picker mechanism consists of a cylinder 58 provided with picker pins 59, the cylinder being mounted upon a shaft 60 extending across the machine and mounted in suitable bearings in the side frames 4 and 5 before referred to. This picker mechanism is of a type well known in the art and no further description thereof is deemed necessary. The picker mechanism, however, derives its motion through the agency of the following mechanism: Mounted upon the end of the shaft 60, outside the side frame 5, is a gear 61, and this gear 61 is in mesh with a gear 62 mounted on a shaft 63 extending across I the machine and journaled in suitable bearings formed in the side frames 1 and 5. Upon the opposite end of the shaft 63 is fixed a pulley 64 and over this pulley 64 runs a belt 65 which also runs over a widefaced larger pulley 65 secured upon one end of the power shaft 38 before referred to, and driven thereby. -By means of the mechanism just described, the picker mechanism is driven continuously at high speed i in part by the 'an inspection of Fig. 1, it will be readily seen that this-forwarding belt 66 underruns the the disentangling and feeding surface, feed throat, the picker mechanism above described, land the raking and tumbling devices. The tobacco used in machines of this kind consists of long shreds with a smallproportion of shorts interspersed between the shreds. As the mass of tobacco is tumbled over and over in per a tendency exists for the shorts to sift down through the long shreds. The shorts which sift down into the throat 39 of course move on downwith the shredded tobacco through said throat. Some shorts, however, may pass through the slots of the plate 40, in which case they will be carried over the top of the raking drum and will drop be tween said drum and the wall 18 to the forwarding surface of the belt 66 and will be forwarded by said'belt with the rest of the p tobacco to the cigarette machine proper.

And so too, any shorts which may sift down between the feed drum and the, wall 26 will fall upon the tobacco on the-forwarding belt 66 and be at once forwarded thereby to the cigarette machine proper. By this construction, all possibility of an accumulation of shorts in any part of the machine is avoided, and the shorts will be forwarded to the cigarette machine in such quantities that they will not affect the cigarettes. The belt 66 is driven by the roll 67 which is fast upon a shaft 68 journaled in suitable bearings in the side frames 4 and5 before referred to. Outside of the side frame 5, the shaft 68 a gear 69 which is in mesh with a gear 70 fast on a shaft? -1 extending across the machine and journaled in suitable hearings in the side frames 4 and 5, The gear 70 is in mesh with an idle gear 72 rotating on a stud 73, this stud being fixed in the side frame 5. The idle gear 72 is in mesh with and derives its motion from the gear 33 before referred to, which it will be remembered is the gear driving the feed drum. By means of the mechanism just described, the forwarding belt 66 is driven at substantially the same surface speed as that of the disentangling and feeding surface of the feed drum. The shaft 71 carries a hollow roller 74, the function of which is to compress the sheet of tobacco forwarded by the belt 66 and to guide it into a curved channel arranged concentrically half of the roll 67. This channel is formed side walls and in part by the belt and in part by a curved stationary plate 75, this plate having an arm 76 at each of its ends hung upon the shaft 71, the plate being held in stationary position by means of-suitable bolts 7 7 securing'it to a delivery chute 78 arranged under the roll 67. The roll 67 is fast on a shaft 79'journaled at the confining hop-' of the side frame infinitesimal the machinebetween is provided with with the delivery each end in boxes 80, these boxes being slidably mounted in the side frames 4 and 5 and. adjusted for belt tightening purposes bymeans of adjusting screws 81.

'Mounted in the delivery chute 78' is a picker roll 82 of well known construction mounted on a shaft 83 which extends across the machine and is journaled in suitable hearings in the side frames 4 and 5 before referred to. The shaft 83 projects outside 5 and its projecting end carries a pulley 84. Overrunning this pulley is a belt 85 which also overruns a pulley 86 fast on the shaft before referred to, outside of the gear 61. The pulleys 84 and- 86 being of the same size, the picker roll 82 has the same angular velocity as the main to the under run of a tobacco forwarding belt and be carried back thereby to drop off at some point in its travel and be wasted. To prevent such action by the present forwarding belt 66, there is provided an intermittently acting device striking run of the belt at a point adjacent the roll 67 and overthe delivery chute 78 to shake from said belt any particle of tobacco which may adhere thereto and pass the picker roll 82. This device is cam controlled and spring actuated. For the purpose above indicated, there is provided a shaft 87 extending across the runs of the belt 66 adjacent the roll 67, and this shaft is journaled in suitable hearings in the side frames 4 and 5. One end of this shaft projects beyond the side frame 5 and the projecting end carries a pinion 88 which is in mesh with the gear 69 before referred to, and is driven thereby. At points adjacent either side of the machine, this shaft is ,cut away to form recesses or cam surfaces 89. Between the shaft 87 and the roll 67 is a bar 90 extending across the machine over the under run of the belt 66, and this bar has at eachend a lug 91 turned at right angles to bar' proper, these lugs resting u on the shaft 87 in the wake of the cam surfaces 89. Secured to each of these lugs by means of a rivet 92, is a spring arm 93 underlying a stud 94, and coiled around another stud 95, both of said studs being fixed in one of the side frames. By an inspection of Fig. 1, it will downwardly until it the range of action the under the plane of the It will of course be understood that the delivery chute 78 is located immediately over and delivers tobacco to a forwarding belt of the cigarette machine proper, which is not here shown but which is well known in the art.

The structure so far described constitutes an automatic feed mechanism complete in itself and operating upon a mass of tobacco confined on the disentangling and feeding surface and the plate 40 over the feed throat 39. For the purpose of preventing irregularity of feed due to varying weight of the tobacco mass, means are provided for preventing variation in the weight of the tobacco mass, said means consisting of a tobacco forwarding device arranged to deliver tobacco to the confined mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by the feeding surface. This tobacco forwarding device is, in the preferred constructions, lo cated above the mass and delivers tobacco to the top thereof. As shown, a hand feed is provided for this purpose, and this hand feed juts through the wall 19'of the casing to a position over the tobacco mass. The brackets 6 and 11 before referred to support a table 96, and over this table runs a feed belt 97. This feed belt also overruns hollow rolls 98 and 99. The roll 98 is fast upon and is driven by a shaft 100 extending across the machine and journaled in suitable hearings in the upper part of the side frames 4 and This shaft projects beyond the side frame and upon its projecting end is secured a gear 101 meshing with a gear 102 fast upon a shaft 103 over the shaft 100. The shaft 103 projects beyond the side frame 4- and upon its projecting end is secured a sprocket wheel 104. A chain 105 overruns this sprocket and also overruns another sprocket 106 fast on the shaft 32 before referred to and which, it will be remembered, is the shaft carrying the feed drum. By means of the mechanism ust described, the feed belt-has a surface spee'd approximately half that of the disentangling and feeding surface of the automatic feed mechanism. This relative slow speed of the feed belt 97 doubles the time available for a feed operator to weigh and spread a definite quantity of tobacco upon a marked area of the belt. A thick sheet can be spread even more readily than a thin sheet. The operator therefore weighs a quantity of tobacco double that heretofore used in hand feeds and has double the time in which to weigh and spread it; consequently, a more uniform spreading of the sheet is facilitated. It may be here remarked that the relative surface speeds of the disentangling and feedingsurface of the automatic feed mechanism and of the feed belt 97 may be varied at will by simply varying the gear ratio of the inter-drive for these devices. The hollow roll 99 is fastcally with the roll 98. This upon a shaft 107, the ends of which are journaled in boxes 108 slidably mounted in the free ends of the brackets 6 and 11 and adjusted therein by means of adjusting screws 109. The shaft 103 carries a hollow roller 110 located over the belt roll 98 and operating to compress the sheet of tobacco manually weighed and positioned on the belt 97 and forwarded thereby. The roller 110 guides the compressed tobacco into a channel 111 formed in part by the side walls and in part by the delivery half of the feed roll 98 and in part by a plate 112 curved concentriplate is provided with an arm 113 at each of its ends hung upon the shaft 103, and is held stationary by means of a bolt 111 at each end.

In order that the delivery of the tobacco from the hand feed just described to the tobacco mass in the automatic feed mechanism may be evenly distributed, there is provided a picker roll 115 mounted upon a shaft 110 extending across the machine and journaled in suitable hearings in the side frames -1 and 5 before referred to. ,This shaft 116 project-s beyond the side frame =1, and upon its projecting end is secured a pulley 117. Overrunning this pulley is a driving belt 118 which also overruns the wide faced driving pulley 65. By an inspection of Figs. 2 and 3, it will be readily understood that this picker mechanism operates at the same speed as the other two plcker mechanisms.

For the purpose of shaking from the under run of the feed belt 97 any particles of tobacco which may adhere thereto. there is provided a cam controlled and spring actuated device intermittently striking said b'elt. This device is a replica of the striking device employed in connection with the forwarding belt 66 and a detailed descrip tion of it need not be repeated. The reference character 119 indicates gene-rally this device, its controlling shaft being marked 120 and provided with a driving pinion 1:21 in mesh with the gear 101 before referred to.

The main power shaft 38 of the machine may be driven from any suitable source of motion and by any suitable means, such for instance as by means of a pulley on the end of the shaft fragment of such a driving pulley isshown in Figs. 2 and 3 and is marked 12:2.

y an inspection of Fig. 1, it will be understood that the cigarette machine operator can see, through the transparent wall 20, not only the mass of tobacco in the automatic feed mechanism, but can also see the delivery of tobacco thereto by the hand feed or tobacco forwarding device jutting through the opposite wall 19 of the hopper; and by this arrangement of parts he knows exactly how the feed is operating and can stop his machine to prevent wastage in the 38 outside of the pulley 65. A

event of any accident or abnormal action, from any cause, in the feed mechanism.

In view of the fact that thefeed operator has twice the time heretofore available for manually weighing and positioning tobacco on the feed belt of the hand feed,

there should be no variation in the uniformwhole. And since the hand feed delivers to the mass of tobacco in the automatic feed mechanism during a given interval a quantity of tobacco equal to that removed from said mass by the disentangling and feeding surface of the automatic feed mechanism, there is no appreciable variation in the weight of the tobacco mass, and consequently there is no appreciable variation in the pressure exerted by that mass to force tobacco upon the pins of the disentangling and feeding surface. The irregularity in the delivery of tobacco in automatic feed mechanisms heretofore used is thus avoided.

In view of the foregoing, a detailed description of the operation of the device is deemed unnecessary and is therefore omitted in the interest of brevity.

What is claimed is:

1. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface. i

2. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a continuously forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and having an intermittent reverse movement therein with respect to said feed surface.

3. In a. cigarette machine feed, the combination with a feed surface forwardly moving through a curved path and formin one wall of a feed throat, of a. slotted plate. orming the opposite wall of said throat, and raking devices "projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface.

4. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a downwardly moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat adapted to receive tobacco from above and to deliver it below, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and

raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and upwardly movable therein.

5. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forniing one wall of a. feed throat, of a stationary slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface.

6. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forwardly rotating drum having a feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and a raking drum intermittently rotatable in a reverse direction with respect to the said forwardly rotating drum and provided with raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat. I

7. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forwardly rotating drum having a feed surface forming one wallof afeed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and a raking drum arranged in horizontal parallelism with the feed drum and intermittently rotatable in a reverse direction with respect to the feed surfaceand provided with raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat.

8. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forwardly rotating drum having a feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted-plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and a raking drum arranged in horizontal parallelism with said feed drum and intermittently rotatable in a reverse direction with respect to said forwardly rotating drum and provided with raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat, a part of said plate being concentrically curved over the raking drum.

9. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forwardly rotating drum having a feed surface forming one wall of afecd throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, and a raking drum arranged in horizontal parallelism with said feed drum and intermittently rotatable in a reverse direction with respect to said forwardly rotating drum and provided with rakingjdevices projecting through the slots of said plate into said threat, the middle section of said plate being concentrically curved over the raking drum and its lower end being concentrically curved over the feed surface.

10. In a cigarette machine feed, the com bination with a forwardly rotating drum having a feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted-plate forming the opposite'wall of said throat, and a raking drum arranged in horizontal parallelism withthe feed drum and intermittently ing pins proj ecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movgble therein with respect to said feed surace.

12. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the slots ofsaid plate intosaid throat and reversely;movable therein with respect to said feed surface, and means for confining a mass of tobacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat.

I 13. In a cigarette machine feed, the comv bination with a forward moving feed sur-. face forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface, and a hopper for confining a mass of tobacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat, saidhopper being provided with a transparent wall.

14. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface, and a hopper for confining a mass of tobacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat, one of the hopper walls being a continuation of said plate.

15. In a cigarette machine feed, the com bination with a forward movin feed surface forming one wall of a fee throat, of

surface and said plate over said throat, one

end of saidplate being supported by one of the hopper Walls and the other by bolts in said throat.

16. In a cigarette machine feed, the coinbination with a forward moving feed surface forming onewall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming theopposite wall of said throat, a support for and at each end of said plate, and raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into sald throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface.

17.. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, a rigid support for and at each end of said plate, and raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with said feed surface, and a picker device 00- Y acting with said plate within said throat.

19. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the i slots of said plate into said throat and re versely movable therein with respect to said feed surface, a picker device co-acting with said plate, and a forwarding belt underrunning the picker device.

20. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surfacforming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, raking'devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface, a picker device co-acting with said plate, a forwarding belt underrunning the picker device, a delivery chute, and mean for removing tobacco from theforwarding belt and showering it into said chute.

21. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface formin one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate orming the opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface, means for confining a mass of tobacco on said feed Surface and said plate over said throat, and tumbling devices projecting through the slots of said plate and engaging the tobacco mass.

* slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, means for confining mass of to bacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat, and rotating tumbling devices projecting through the slots of said plateand engaging the tobacco mass.

24,. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed. surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, 'means for confining amass of tobacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat, and a series of rotating ratchet-like tumbling wheels projecting through the slots 'of said plate and engaging the tobacco mass.

25. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forwardly rotating drum having a feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, a raking drum arranged in horizontal parallelism with the feed drum and intermittently rotatable in a reverse direction with respect to said feed' surface and provided with raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat, and tumbling devices located above the raking drum and projecting through the slots of said plate.

26..lln a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a tobacco mass hopper having a wall provided'with a series of parallel slots, of tobacco tumbling devices projecting through said slots to engage the mass.

27. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination witha tobacco mass hopper having a wall provided with a series of parallel slots, of rotating tumbling devices projecting through said slots to engage the mass.

28. lln a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a tobacco mass hopper having .a wall provided with a series of parallel slots, of a series of ratchet-like tumbling wheels projecting through said slots to engage the mass.

29. In a cigarette machine feed, the com- ,bination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said feed surface, means for confining a mass of tobacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat, and a tobacco forwarding device co-acting with said confining means to deliver fresh tobacco to the confined mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by the feed surface.

30. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided ,with a feed throat formed by a moving disentangling and feeding surface and a plate co-acting therewith to support a mass of tobacco over said throat, of a tobacco forwarding device coacting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface. 31; The combination'with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a feed throat formed by a moving disentangling andfeeding surface and a plate co-acting therewith to support a mass of tobacco over said throat, of a tobacco forwarding device located above and co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the top of the mass in accordance with the quantity removed from'said mass by said surface.

32. The combination .with anautomatic feed mechanism provided with a feed throat formed by a moving disentangling and feeding surface and a plate co-ac'ting therewith to support a mass of tobacco over said throat,

of a continuously operating tobacco for-- warding device co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface. s

33. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided witha feed throat formed by a moving disentangling and feeding surface and a plate co-acting therewith to support a mass of tobacco over said throat and with a'tobacco mass confining hopper above said throat, of a tobacco forwarding device jutting through one of the hopper .walls and co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

34. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a feed throat formed by a moving disentangling and feeding surface and a plate co-acting therewith to support a mass of tobacco over said throat and with a tobacco mass confining hopper above said throat, of a tobacco forwarding device jutting through one of the hopper walls and having a picker mechanism adapted to shower tobacco on the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

35. The combination with an automatic of a tobacco forwarding device co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

36. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling andfeeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco upon said' surface, of a tobacco forwarding device located above and co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

37. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco upon said surface, of a continuously operating tobacco forwarding device located above and co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

38. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and a hopper for onfining a mass of tobacco upon said surface, of a tobacco forwarding device jutting through one of the hopper walls and co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

39. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided .with a disentangling and feeding surface and a hopper for confining a mass of tobacco upon said sur face, of a tobacco forwarding device jutting through one of the hopper walls and having a picker mechanism adapted to shower fresh tobacco on the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface.

40. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco upon said surface, of a tobacco forwarding device co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface, said surface and said device being movable at different speeds,

41. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco upon said surface, of a hand feed for forwarding to said mass tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed.

42. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disen-= tangling and feeding surface and means for confinin a mass of tobacco upon said surface, 0 a hand feed operating to continuously forward to said mass tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed.

Q3. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of. tobacco upon said surface, of a hand feed located above 'said mechanism for forwarding to the top of the mass tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed.

M. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco in contact with said surface, of a hand feed for forwarding to said mass tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed.

45. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco in contact with said surface, of a relatively slow moving hand feed for forwarding to said mass tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed.

'46. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a'mass of tobacco in contact with said surface, of a hand feed arranged to forward in sheet form tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed and having picker mechanism to shower said tobacco from said sheet upon said mass.

47. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco in contact with said surface, of a tobacco forwarding device co-acting with said mechanism to deliver fresh tobacco to the confined mass in accordance with the quantity removed therefrom by said surface. 48. In a cigarette machine feed, the combination with a forward moving feed surface forming one wall of a feed throat, of a slotted plate forming the .opposite wall of said throat, raking devices projecting through the slots of said plate into said throat and reversely movable therein with respect to said surface, means for confining a mass of tobacco on said feed surface and said plate over said throat, a tobacco forwarding device for delivering fresh tobacco to the confined mass, and means for maintaining the proper relative speed of said surface and said forwarding device.

49. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco on said surface, of a tobacco forwarding device for delivering fresh tobacco to the mass, and means for maintaining the proper relative speed of said surface and said forwarding device.

50. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentan ling and feeding surface and means for confining a mass of tobacco upon said surface, of a hand feed for forwarding to said mass tobacco manually measured and positioned in said hand feed, and means for maintaining the proper relative speed of saidsurface and said hand feed.

51. The combination with an automatic .feed mechanism provided with a disenfor maintaining the proper relative speed of said surface and said hand feed.

52-. The combination with an automatic feed mechanism provided with a disentangling and feeding surface and means for confinin a mass of tobacco in contact with said surface, of a tobacco forwarding device for delivering fresh tobacco to the confined mass, and means for maintaining the pro er relative. speed of said surface and said orwarding device.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification. v

SYDNEY I. PRESCOTT. 

